Basic Excel Functions You Should Know

Microsoft Excel is one of the Microsoft Office suite’s heavyweights powerful for financial outfits, corporates, and everyday users. In the spirit of boosting your Outlook Productivity, we cover crucial Excel tips that you should know. So, whether you’re a business owner running an inventory, a student, or a home user managing a household budget, learning these essential functions will make your Excel tasks more enjoyable, productive, and accurate.

Microsoft Excel 2016 Basic Functions.

Sum

Anyone using Excel should at least understand how to conduct basic arithmetic. The sum function comes in handy when you want to add numbers in two cells (e.g., B2 and C2) in a different cell, say D2. Simply enter =SUM (B2:C2) into D2 and hit enter for a sum of the two cells.

Resize Rows and Columns

The default cell width and height in Excel is not a one-size-fits-all. Sometimes you need to adjust the height and width. Click the specific row or column and locate the “Format” button in the “Home” tab.

Here, you find a list of the adjustable column and row dimensions. The simplest way, though, is the mouse adjustment. You only need to place the mouse pointer between the row and the column and drag it to your desired size.

Edit Rows, Cells, and Columns

If you need to add a cell, row, or column, simply use the “Insert” and “Delete Cells” commands. Locate the “Insert Sheet Columns” option within the Cell group and follow the prompt.

The group also has the “Delete” menu, where you can erase any row, cell, or column you want. 

But the simplest and quickest method to insert or delete is to right-click and choose from the pop-up menu.

Customize Printing for Large Workbooks

Spreadsheets are appealing from large monitors, but the look might change when you print out your workbook. You will have significant paper wastages and contracted data if you print your workbook without adjusting the printing options. Excel addresses this issue by applying the “Backstage Printing” option, which allows you to change page orientation and size.

To adjust margins for extra information on a single sheet, click “Show Margin” on the backstage print tab. Now, drag the margins to accommodate every data that may be spilling over to another page.

If you need to adjust more than one page, follow the “Page Setup” dialog to make further changes. This is the same dialogue that you use to add the header and footer to your spreadsheet. Be sure to use the scaling menu to reduce text size to fit but don’t scale too much not to affect legibility.

Freeze Panes

Some parts, such as spreadsheet headers, are so crucial that you want them to stick to your focus as you scroll through. Open “View” and locate the “Freeze Panes.” Here, you can select what you want to remain visible as you scroll.

Excel allows you to analyze and manipulate data through functions and formulas that are generally productive compared to writing formulas. The basic functions discussed here impede data input while providing customized and accurate results.